To think private rent increases should be limited to inflation only

[Fancymice]

We are currently applying to rent a 2 bedroom house for £785 a month. The same house was up for rent previously 2 years ago for £695.

The seems like a massive increase, and other houses for rent on the area seem to have gone up by the same or even more. We're currently in a 3 bed for £850, but it has a dreadful damp problem. No doubt our landlord will paint it and put it back up for £900/£950.

Aibu to think private landlords should be limited in how much they increase rent? I understand that there is limited supply, so landlords are taking advantage of this to put up prices, but like most people my wages are not increasing on real terms and having a somewhere to live is quickly becoming unaffordable!!

There are still places in the USA with rent controls, e.g. New York, and to this day these properties are under-occupied compared to ones where a market-rent is required

Oh yeah, as a New Yorker I can tell you those $800 p.m rent controlled 2 bedroom apartments in Greenwich Village, home of the 2k a month studio, are completely under occupied. No one wants them

Oh yeah, as a New Yorker I can tell you those $800 p.m rent controlled 2 bedroom apartments in Greenwich Village, home of the 2k a month studio, are completely under occupied. No one wants them

Would the total number of people living in the currently rent controlled apartments be higher, lower or the same, if the rents on all of them doubled?

A US economist had said the number would be higher, what is your reasoning, if you think otherwise?

(I think he quoted a statistic that people are much more likely to live alone in these aparments than in non-rent-controlled areas. Possibly you didn't read my original post properly and haven't really understood what is meant by under-occupied?)

I allow people with benefits & pets

Sounds fair to me. Family homes shouldn’t be investor-fodder. Lots of people will come up with reasons why neither this nor anything else should be done. They usually have a vested interest

Anyone who disagrees with you must have a vested interest? What nonsense.

I don’t own any property other than my own and have no intention of doing so. I don’t believe the government should be dictating to private owners or companies how they must price their properties. That’s interfering with the market, and with a fundamental principle of how business works in the U.K. Next people will be suggesting they decide that supermarkets can’t charge over a certain amount for food.

If the government is to ensure security of affordable housing, they should be buying these properties or building their own and letting them for peppercorn rents. The answer to housing problems is not to pass the price on to private housing providers with whom they have no contract.

Let the market decide. If people can’t pay the price, the prices will come down.

Even the Guardian acknowledges that rent controls don't work.
www.theguardian.com/world/2015/aug/19/why-stockholm-housing-rules-rent-control-flat

Well if you keep putting higher taxes and charges on landlords, rents are going to rise.

More detail on why rent controls don't work.
www.iea.org.uk/sites/default/files/publications/files/DP_Rent%20ceilings.pdf

Highly unfair your viewpoint, I have house rented ( and yes I need the money), with agents, requests granted and always treated well and fairly.
Plus interest rates for savers crap, not good idea.
Rates are set to areas too.

@PersonaNonGarter

It’s hard but it is fair. The rent is going up according to market rates and the landlord will be paying increased bills on eg trades, goods, and so on as everything goes up.

There needs to be a better way. We need more homes fast.

But market rates aren't fair are they because we are in the midst of a housing crisis and demand is huge. Doesn't make it okay for private landlords to charge obscene amounts of money does it?

Until something is done at government level you as a tenant need me more than I need you.
And I don't say that with any satisfaction.

This is so true. The new punitive tax rules, eg pretending a landlord has no mortgage interest and so taxing them on money they haven't received, and adding an extra stamp duty charge have made the numbers not stack up. No wonder there is such a shortage of BTLs. It's not helped FTBs be able to buy either, so what was the point?

I've rented many times over my life: as a student, as a new grad in a new city and even I moved cities for a job while I found somewhere to buy. I was GRATEFUL that someone had a private rental I could rent. What would have been the alternative?

I think this hatred of landlords is fueled by jealousy, because as other PP have pointed out, nobody treats supermarkets or utility companies with this vitriol

TheHouseILiveIn The hatred of Landlords is because long term renting is ruining many people’s lives. Things were better in the past when there were at least council houses. Now many people have the prospect of giving all their salary to a landlord with little hope of owning their own homes. I think it’s more resentment than jealousy. The government allowed house prices to inflate and sold off council houses and some people have done very well out of this situation whilst others are suffering.

@stairway in the past most people didnt own their own homes and they didnt all live in counvil housing either. Private rental has alaays been the norm in the UK.

Its certainly true there was more council housing in the recent past, but the Tories sold it off and a lot of people support them in doing that (and still do).

I'm a single, working parent. I work full-time and receive universal credit. I rent a 2 bedroom house for £925 that's just been sold and the new owner is happy for me to stay, but they want £1100 a month. My housing benefit is around £750, the maximum for 2 bedrooms where I live.

There's nowhere to move to in the current market. Landlords can charge that much because people are desperate, but it doesn't mean that they should or that the property is worth that much.

£1100 a month for a tiny house in not the nicest of areas. Madness. I don't know how I'm going to afford food.

The other consideration is the pensions crisis and extended life expectancy meaning people need to look at things like property investment to pay for their retirement.

It's all well and good blaming "greedy landlords " (not my view BTW) but if someone needs and wants to provide for their retirement in the absence of pre crisis pensions, can we really blame them?

I am a landlord and a tenant, and i agree OP. The place I'm renting has rent increases capped at 2% per year, which gives some security. I have no intention on raising my tenant's rent this year, even though the average rent has gone up enormously in my area this past year.

I also think it's ridiculous that landlords expect their mortgage + all other costs to be covered. No other business owner would expect to end up with an asset worth several hundred thousand pounds without putting in any of their own money.

Changes to rules regarding electrical safety testing are a new added cost (although a good idea). Plus not letting agents cannot charge big fees to tenants, they may be passing them on to landlords.

@stairway

TheHouseILiveIn The hatred of Landlords is because long term renting is ruining many people’s lives. Things were better in the past when there were at least council houses. Now many people have the prospect of giving all their salary to a landlord with little hope of owning their own homes. I think it’s more resentment than jealousy. The government allowed house prices to inflate and sold off council houses and some people have done very well out of this situation whilst others are suffering.

This is true but I think the anger at landlords is misdirected. They're not evil...they are just running a business and fulfilling a need. Council houses are non-existent and I don't see the government acquiring more! Punishing landlords leads to renters being punished. Honestly, if all landlords disappeared, what would happen to renters?

@Holdingontonothing

The other consideration is the pensions crisis and extended life expectancy meaning people need to look at things like property investment to pay for their retirement.

It's all well and good blaming "greedy landlords " (not my view BTW) but if someone needs and wants to provide for their retirement in the absence of pre crisis pensions, can we really blame them?

Exactly!

@ShinyBeans

I'm a single, working parent. I work full-time and receive universal credit. I rent a 2 bedroom house for £925 that's just been sold and the new owner is happy for me to stay, but they want £1100 a month. My housing benefit is around £750, the maximum for 2 bedrooms where I live.

There's nowhere to move to in the current market. Landlords can charge that much because people are desperate, but it doesn't mean that they should or that the property is worth that much.

£1100 a month for a tiny house in not the nicest of areas. Madness. I don't know how I'm going to afford food.

This isn't good. But I don't know what the answer is If your landlord thought it wasn't worth it she would sell up and you would have to find somewhere else. But that would probably be difficult because a lot of landlords would be in the same position. Renting stock would decrease and competition would be intense. You wouldn't be able to find anywhere

Telling landlords to reduce rent when their costs are rising would just lead to less private rentals available

Haven't read all the replies but no, it shouldn't be capped at inflation: their costs increase in other ways. If / when they renew their mortgage it could go up, and they'll need to pass that to the tenant. Repairs and maintenance too: those costs are going up so will need to be passed on.

I think if all landlords sold up, I think the government would be forced to address the housing crisis. It would mean a lot of misery to begin with but at least our children might have a better future overall.

@ChampagneLassie

The housing situation in this country is ridiculous and is a result of poor government policy over the last 20+ years. B2L landlords exploit the situation. A proper Labour government would offer real ways to tackle this. As others have said other countries have rent controls and restrictions such that becoming a landlord doesn't look like some sort of massive money spinner. I'd vote for that

Sadly the last Labour government were pushing the whole BTL and let's not forget the PFP arrangements which the public sector will be paying off forever but never own.

Checked Rightmove last night five mile radius put on market in the last 24 hours almost all of them said SSTC I was stunned.

My friend put her 2 bed house on the market first viewer offered full price cash buyer. Second home for the moment, so they want to buy some of the furniture.

The housing market here is on fire still

@dameofdilemma

Other countries manage to have rent controls and better protections for tenants without the entirety of capitalism breaking down and melting into a puddle of communism.

Take a long hard look at housing in this country - houses have become an investment vehicle rather than a home.

Noone forces a landlord to become a landlord but everyone needs (and deserves) safe, adequate, long term shelter.

I totally agree there are little controls. However having a BTL property comes with a massive amount of risk as the borrowing is help without the normal protections of a residential mortgage. We haven't seen banks fail but in Iceland people lost their property through banks failing.

You do realise that the landlord pays income tax on the rent too at whatever rate they pay so potentially higher rate tax.